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Adventure Comics Vol 1 37
Supporting Characters: * * Antagonists: * Other Characters: * Ah Hamid * Naida * French Navy Locations: * , Vehicles: * French Gunboat | StoryTitle2 = Cotton Carver: "The White Witch" | Synopsis2 = On the edge of the great abyss, Volor the Dwarf leads Cotton Carver down into the bowels of the earth. They step out into a land of death, where the lakes are all dried out, and the trees bear no leaves: the land of the Witch Queen, Kothe. Volor turns pale in fear as the native tribe, known as the Reed Men (because of their grassy green skin) charge towards them with spears and clubs raised. Though Cotton and Volor try to fight them off, the numbers are too great and they are overwhelmed, and taken to the Reed Men's lair, where the dark Queen Kothe resides. With all her beauty, it is hard for Cotton to believe that she was truly a witch. She sentences the two intruders to be locked in the deepest dungeon. The Reed Men take away Volor's axe, but don't recognize Carver's side-arm as a weapon, or bother to take it away. When night falls, he shoots off the cell door's lock and then he and Volor run to the armory, steal some swords, and then hurry upstairs to Kothe's private chamber, where handmaidens are busy servicing her every whim. Cotton and Volor both keep the servants at bay with their swords, then grab the Queen and carry her away, with a squad of guard in pursuit. They dash down the steps into the courtyard. A lone tower looms invitingly to the fugitives, who headed in its direction. Kothe shrieks for them to stop when she sees where they are going: the Temple of the Heartstone, where deadly peril lays in wait for all who dare enter! | Appearing2 = Featured Characters: * Supporting Characters: * Volor Antagonists: * Queen Kothe ** her servants ** her guards * Reed Men Locations: * ** Land of Kothe *** Temple of the Heartstone | StoryTitle3 = Federal Men: "Wrong Side of the Law, Part 6" | Synopsis3 = Steve Carson regains his full memory after coming into contact with his old friend Ralph Ventor, in the alley where Red had tried to set them up against each other, only to be fatally shot down himself. And now that he remembers everything, Steve tells Ralph that he helped the Phantom Gang plan their next heist while he had amnesia, and now he has a plan to catch them. He would return to the hideout as "Dan Steele", and collect enough evidence for the F.B.I. to nab them. But back at the hideout, one of the gangsters has seen a picture of Dan Steele in an old magazine. The article was titled "How G-Men Work", and below the picture was a caption that identified their boss as Steve Carson, Federal Agent. Not knowing about Steve's amnesia, the men automatically assume that they've been set-up the entire time "Dan" has been with them! At this point, their wrong answer might as well be right, and they get ready for the boss's return. As soon as "Dan Steele" comes through the door, they hold him at gunpoint, and force him outside into their car. Steve can't think of what to do, now that his cover had been blown. The gang drives him out until they come to some open farm land. It is here that Steve figures they'd kill him, since no one would hear the shots. But as he is pulled out and forced to stand off to the side, an idea hits him, and he asks one simple question: who would be the leader after he was gone? And this creates an argument between the gangsters as each boasts why he should lead. The man holding the gun at Steve suddenly and very stupidly turns to shoot the other, and Steve instantly lashes out, striking the gunner on his jaw! Ralph has by now arrived on the scene, just in time to watch Steve knock out the last of the Phantom Gang. The surviving two members are arrested on charges of murder and grand theft. While they are having coffee an hour later, Steve confides to Ralph that it was by far the strangest case he had ever been a part of. | Appearing3 = Featured Characters: * Supporting Characters: * ** Ralph Ventor Antagonists: * The "Phantom Gang" Locations: * | StoryTitle4 = Tod Hunter: "The God of the Ruby Eye, Part 10" | Synopsis4 = Tod has arrived in the deepest part of the Symian Palace to find an old wizard and his seductive young wife, Tamir, whom he then follows into the back room. In an act of jealousy, Dante the sorcerer prepares a potent spell to be cast upon the adventurer. He summons his servant and instructs him to deliver two drinks to his wife and Tod, the one for Tod carrying a powerful potion to render him helpless and susceptible to suggestion. Tamir is disgusted by her husbands action and grabs a knife but Dante warns her that his life and Tod's are now connected; if she kills him then Tod will die too. Tamir begs for his release from the spell, but Dante first requires a message to be delivered to his nemesis, Torog. Following the wizard's command, the spellbound Tod Hunter, who wears an envelope on a string around his neck, goes to the underground river where a canoe has been docked nearby. With Dante's thought waves guiding him, Tod navigates through the rushing rapids, steering the boat around the scattered, jutting rocks, until he reaches a smooth underground lake. A watchman on a small dock blocks Tod from progressing further onto the land, when he noticed the letter that he carried around his neck. Tod is taken before Torog, who reads the letter from Dante with disgust. It tells him to kill the messenger if he values his life, or else Tod was ordered to kill him. At first, it seems like Torog will heed the letter's warning, but as he studies Tod closely, he can see that Dante has in fact put a spell over the man, robbing him of his own will. Torog summons his own mage, Saga, to help remove the curse. A short while later, Tod awakens from the effects of the spell; some of his memory has also returned, though the events of the past few days are vague, and he can't recall where he left Tommy and Gail. Torog tells Tod that Dante the wizard placed a spell on him, and tried to have him kill Torog, who was the rightful ruler of the Symian Palace and the father of Tamir. He had been overthrown by Dante and forced into hiding, always plotting with his remaining loyal guards to get revenge upon the old usurper. Tod Hunter still couldn't remember any of it, but he swore to Torog to help him overthrow Dante, if he returned the favor by helping him find his friends Tommy and Gail. Unseen, two of Torog's followers overhear this and decide to tell Dante about the plot, hoping to receive a large reward. Torog's army forms up in preparation for their attack, arming themselves with swords and spears. Soon, with Tod and Torog leading the charge, the small army sets out in boats, towards the temple where Dante readily awaits them. | Appearing4 = Featured Characters: * Antagonists: * Dante Other Characters: * Tamir * Torog * Saga * Gail Duncan * Tommy Locations: * Symian Palace | Writer5_1 = Fred Schwab | Penciler5_1 = Fred Schwab | Inker5_1 = Fred Schwab | StoryTitle5 = Don Coyote: "A Playboy In King Arthur's Court, Part 1" | Synopsis5 = | Appearing5 = Featured Characters: * Supporting Characters: * Locations: * ** Concepts: * | StoryTitle6 = Dale Daring: "The Ivory Smugglers, Part 3" | Synopsis6 = Dale and Don, accompanied by part of the company from the jungle outpost, are proceeding up the river in hopes of catching the ivory smugglers, after managing to confiscate their stolen loot. While on the island where Dale and Don were first captured, the other half of the company, including the Lieutenant, waits as a mysterious boat approaches the shore. They watch from the brush as men start to unload the tusks off the boat. The lieutenant orders his men to spread out and surround the smugglers, and to charge in when he gives the signal. After sufficient time had passed to allow his men to get into position, the lieutenant fires his gun into the air. The men unloading the cargo of tusks quickly find themselves surrounded by the armed militia, having no choice but to surrender. But as one party is apprehended, a sinister plan is being carried out back on the river. Riding in a small launch, the smugglers' leader and his men are dropping mines into the water to destroy the militia ship carrying Dale and Don. But the sound of their launch's engine is faintly heard by Dale, and she alerts the general that there might be a trap up ahead. Fifty feet before hitting the explosive mines, the ship drops anchor, and the crew pick up the trail on foot. This is an unexpected move, as the smuggler boss is still listening for the impending explosion back at the hideout. What he hears instead is the military general shouting for him to surrender. The boss replies with a hail of bullets from his tommy-gun, which forces the patrol group to scatter for cover. One of them throws a fiery branch onto the thatched roof of the smuggler's hut, setting it ablaze. Seconds later, the fire catches the gunpowder kept in the hideout, and an explosion knocks Dale and the patrol off their feet. But it isn't over yet, because they then spot the gang trying to escape by speedboat, which they must have boarded after exiting through a back door. It seems they'll get away at first, but then their boat hits against something in the water and blows up. The smugglers had forgotten about the mines they had set up before. | Appearing6 = Featured Characters: * Supporting Characters: * Don Brewster Antagonists: * Ivory Smugglers Other Characters: * Military General ** two regiments Locations: * | StoryTitle7 = Captain Desmo: "Hidden Paradise, Part 2" | Synopsis7 = After trudging through sleet and snow in the Himalayas with a party of porters in search of a lost expedition, Captain Desmo and Gabby have found the entrance to a hidden tropical valley behind a mountain. While they are exploring the seemingly miraculous land, a large prehistoric crocodile strikes out of the nearby river, almost catching Desmo in its large jaws! The group take refuge from this menace atop a rocky knoll. They have to get across that river, so a distraction is needed. Desmo volunteers. Gabby begins to lead the party across the murky waters as Desmo lures the crocodile into chasing him up a tree. As soon as he sees Gabby's signal, Desmo takes hold of a vine and swings over the crocodile and the river, to the shore on the other side. There they have found a trail, which they follow all the way to a high wall built from wood and bamboo, atop which stands a guard, who calls out for them to halt. A small door built into the large barricade opens, revealing a rotund fellow, and behind him is another gentleman, the sight of whom makes Irma gasp. She pushes her way past the others and runs up to the man, throwing her arms around him. It is her father, the professor whom they were trying to find! Professor Gladstone invites the party inside and gives his thanks especially to Captain Desmo for helping him get reunited with his only daughter. He then explains the need of the high walls to the curious Desmo: the tribe he lives with are a peaceful lot and yet they are constantly under attack by the Mudas, a tribe of giants who are savage and warlike. Right at that moment a scream rings out from the watchtower as a tribesman falls to the ground, a giant arrow piercing his chest. The Mudas are attacking again! Quickly the villagers prepare their defense, under the direction of the professor. Gabby and Desmo peer out over the wall, and nearly lose their balance in shock, at the sight of the Mudas Tribe, who are indeed huge. They tower over the tree canopy, wielding large spears and shouting in a booming concert of yells. It doesn't seem to Desmo that the archers will be able to kill all the Mudas before they break through the wall and stampede on the villagers. Thinking fast, he has Gabby bring the porters' machine gun, hoping that they could use it to thin out the enemy's numbers. Unluckily for them, the gun jams just as one more giant remains. It staggers closer, until it's able to nab Desmo in its hand and lift him high up in the air. Gabby, in his desperation, makes a sling out of the gun belt and loads a huge rock into the center, swinging and letting it fly like a missile directly into the Mudas' skull, causing it to topple, and drop the captain safely into the brush. With the last of the monsters destroyed, there is great rejoicing among the tribe and Professor Gladstone. Irma decides to stay with her father in the tropical land hidden in the mountains. Following their wishes, Marie promises not to print anything in her paper about the valley, keeping its secret safe. And so Captain Desmo, Gabby, and the hiking party depart, heading back to the village of Delhor and new adventure! | Appearing7 = Featured Characters: * Supporting Characters: * Gabby McGuire Antagonists: * The Mudas Tribe Other Characters: * Irma Gladstone * Professor Gladstone * Marie Gordon Locations: * ** Nephul Territory *** Delhor village *** hidden tropical valley **** crocodile-infested river **** friendly village **** Mudas giants' territory | StoryTitle9 = Tom Brent: "The Missionary's Daughter" | Synopsis9 = Tom, while on a short vacation in Chinese territory, decides to take a turn around the harbor in a friend's motorboat. It is night, and a dense fog begins to roll in. Nearby his location, three men struggle to make their motor work, to no avail. Tom spots them through the fog and pulls his boat up next to theirs to offer a lift back to dock. They accept his offer and step aboard, with Tom noticing two of the men carrying strange bundles with them as they went. They ask to be let off at a point a little ways off from the the main dock, making Tom a bit suspicious, but he tells them he'll do the best he can. The thick fog greatly decreases visibility, Tom can only rely on his knowledge of the area to guide his boat through. Suddenly, a small dinghy crosses in front of his bow, leading to an impact that knocks one of the three mysterious passengers overboard. The woman aboard the dinghy cries out for help. Tom Brent leaps into the water, where he takes hold of the unconscious girl and pulls her back aboard his boat. He attempts to revive her, but is stopped by one of the men pulling a gun out of his coat. Tom is ordered to continue steering to where they want to go, while they keep the girl in the cabin to use as a hostage should he think of trying anything. He comes across a Chinese patrol boat that is making routine searches of all vessels, as there are reports of a group of smugglers in the area. The inspector boards Tom's craft and asks to check the cabin, which was where the three smugglers were currently hiding. The woman Tom saved steps out of the cabin in a hasty movement, as if pushed, and greets the patrol unit, saying she was Tom's wife. The inspector seems satisfied that they weren't hiding anything, and orders his men back onto the boat to continue the search. Finally, the smugglers arrive at the cove where they have their hideout, and order Tom to stop the boat. He knows that if he doesn't act now, he and the girl will be killed, so Tom lands a sucker punch on the man closest to him. He grabs the girl and the two of them hop overboard and swim to the far shore, and hide in a patch of reeds, where they properly introduce themselves. The woman is Judy Leeds, whose father works with the missionaries at the main dock. Tom apologizes for hitting her boat and getting her into this mess but Judy simply shakes her head, saying that she has a feeling it will all be over soon. Before he can ask what she meant, they are interrupted by an old man holding a shotgun. Not believing their story, the old man takes them back to his fishing hut where he can call the police on them. Meanwhile, at the smugglers' hideout, where the boat is anchored, the men who hijacked Tom's boat are conducting what they believe to be a business deal, with a gentleman and his companions. It turns out that the gentleman is the police inspector, working undercover, and as soon as the money is passed, he and the patrolmen arrest the smugglers. Tom and Judy are later found by the inspector and released from the old man's custody. But, Tom asks, how did they know where to find the hideout? The inspector reveals that he had their boat followed after being tipped off by what Judy said earlier, about Tom being her husband. Inspector John Leeds would have known if his daughter had gotten married, after all! | Appearing9 = Featured Characters: * Antagonists: * Smugglers Other Characters: * Judy Leeds * John Leeds Locations: * | StoryTitle10 = Skip Schuyler: "The Count and the Countess" | Synopsis10 = Skip Schuyler is one of the best agents in the United States Intelligence Service, having cracked more spy rings than any other man. He is on assignment at the station where two international spies, known as the Count and Countess, have been rumored to be meeting. His orders are to find out what they're up to, and stop them. When the train arrives and the passengers step off, Skip spots a suspicious bearded gentleman meeting with a young blonde lady, speaking Russian. He follows them by cab to a hotel where he waits until they sign the registry and have been taken to their room. Skip then signs in for himself, taking note of the last recent entry which confirms that the man and woman are the two he is looking for, "Count and Countess Ludwig Sarnovsky", and beside it was the room number. He makes sure to get the room directly across the hall from theirs, and then makes a call to headquarters to request the help of Pete Garth, who specializes in the installation of concealed dictaphones. Five minutes later, Skip watches through his partly open door as Sarnovsky and the woman leave their room for the restaurant. Garth arrives a moment later, and with Skip's skeleton key, they enter the couple's room, and began setting up the dictaphone behind the radiator. All that remains to do now is to wait until tomorrow, to see if the device picks up any noteworthy conversation. The next day, having retrieved the dictaphone while Mr. Ludwig Sarnovsky was away, Skip and Pete head back to headquarters so they can listen to whatever evidence was recorded. The device begins repeating what was said between the two spies, late last night. The Count has come to America to steal the plans to a new type of Army high-speed plane, which has just been perfected by the engineers. The plans are kept in a vault at an Army base in Virginia, and they are planning to strike tonight! Skip takes a small group with him to the military base, where he tells the Commanding Officer about the plot, and then waits until nightfall. An hour after dark, piloting her own aeroplane, the Countess arrives, lands, and taxies to the front of one hangar, gets out, and confers with the mechanic that comes running up, telling him that her plane's fuel was running low. The mechanic will need official permission to help out with this, and walks to the duty office, while behind him a stealthy figure slips out of the plane, and hurries off into the shadows of the hangar. Watching from behind some crates, Skip leaves his agents to deal with the girl, while he follows after the shadowy second suspect. When he gets into the hangar, he sees that the safe in the wall has already been opened. Someone runs quickly past him towards the exit, but years of training have given Skip the ability to move without hesitation, and he tackles the figure before he can reach the door! It's Sarnovsky, the Count, all right, the force of the tackle having knocked the breath out of him. Ahead of him, Skip's men have already taken the woman into custody. Skip Schuyler stands in the commander's office, with Ludwig Sarnovsky and his partner Hedi Laskey, alias the Countess, in cuffs waiting. Their fate would be life behind bars, and Skip would receive another nod for his flawless case-solving skills. | Appearing10 = Featured Characters: * Supporting Characters: * United States Intelligence Service ** Pete Garth Antagonists: * Ludwig Sarnovskyaka Count * Hedi Lasky aka Countless Other Characters: * * Doris Willis Murray * Commander Grey * Smythe | StoryTitle11 = Rusty and His Pals: "The Pirate Ship, Part 12" | Synopsis11 = While hiding out in a cave, Rusty and his pals are befriended by Alfred Forrest, a strange old man who is also an enemy of Slade. Steve volunteers an idea to help Alfred get his revenge, when he notices the powdered dust that came off the rocks. Back at the house, Slade has been drinking heavily while his men are playing cards, deciding that because there was no way for the boys and Steve to get off the island, they could just take their time hunting them. Eventually, a drunken Slade hobbles off to bed as night began to creep over them. A few minutes pass. A long, manlike, shadowy figure makes its way up the stairs towards Slade's room. Omar is standing guard out front, gets a good look at the figure, and flees in terror. The figure opens the door and steps into the Slade's room, and looms over Slade as he lurches awake. It's the ghostly white figure of Alfred Forrest! Slade has believed for months that he had killed Alfred, and is very drunk. He faints. The "ghost", which is actually just Alfred covered head-to-toe in powdered dust, and he now lifts the blinds on the window in a signal to Steve. He has just finished tying the fainting coward to a chair when Steve comes in with the boys. It is time to take care of the others, so Steve leaves Rusty, Specs, and Tubby in charge of keeping Slade company, while he and Alfred go downstairs with their guns, to seek out the rest of the crime ring. The Duchess is the first to see them coming, but her shouts are silenced with a swift blow to the head. Hunch suddenly appears from out of a doorway off to the side, with a hunting rifle in hand, about ready to fire on Steve and Alfred. Lucky for them, Rusty has been watching from the banister above and, noticing the humpbacked villain right away, he leaps on top of him and knocks him unconscious to the floor. Soon they have the entire smuggling gang tied up and glaring, with Alfred laughing that they really believed he was a ghost. An odd feeling nags at the back of Rusty's mind, not believing that it is really over. And as a mysterious boat floats towards the island shore, it would seem like he was right. | Appearing11 = Featured Characters: * * Specs * Tubby Supporting Characters: * Steve Carter Antagonists: * Ichabod Slade * The Duchess * Omar * Hunch * Dr. Kurtz Other Characters: * Alfred P. Forrest | StoryTitle12 = Anchors Aweigh: "El Diablo, Part 10" | Synopsis12 = The U.S. battleship, while carrying the Ambassador, is passing in review before a fort that's been secretly captured by El Diablo's men. They intend to fire real shells into the ship instead of the blanks that are supposed to be used in the salute. Don and Red have already been tipped off about the situation, and they come streaking out of the sky in an airplane, hoping to attack the fort in time to prevent a disaster that could lead to war. Red mans the plane's machine gun, sending a hail of lead into the men behind the cannons. Regular members of the army are able to retake the fort in time to switch back the real shells for the blanks and fire the salute, with the ship and her crew none the wiser. El Diablo's grim plan ends in failure. The chief of police and other dignitaries, including the Russian consul Ivan Dankevich and Herr Von Stolz the German merchant, hurry forward to meet Don and Red at the landing strip. They all step into the hangar, where Don Kerry debriefs them on the situation, reminding them that El Diablo's plan to destroy the battleship must never reach the papers. They all congratulate him and Red, but it seems to the chief that El Diablo has once again gotten away. Don grins and replies that, no, he hasn't. When he was captured before, Don noted that El Diablo had a thick German accent, one that would be very difficult to hide. They all are shocked as the realization hits them that El Diablo was among them right now! Von Stolz draws his gun, but Don is ready for this and makes a quick grab for it. The two men fight it out toe-to-toe, until finally Don delivers a hammer-like blow that makes Von Stolz stagger to the ground. He is placed in handcuffs and led away to a waiting jail cell, leaving the mystery of the murders and rebellion solved at last! | Appearing12 = Featured Characters: * Supporting Characters: * Red Murphy Antagonists: * * Diabolo's men * Wang Ku Other Characters: * Admiral Allen * Colonel Vargas * Ivan Dankevich * Marshall * Bruce Marvin Locations: * ** Montero Vehicles: * U.S. battleship | Notes = * Final chapter of Anchors Aweigh's ten-part El Diablo serial. * Final chapter of Barry O'Neill's long-running Fang Gow serial. * Genocide: Using a machine gun and an improvised sling, Captain Desmo and his sidekick Gabby wiped out the entire "Mudas" tribe of Himalayan giant humans. * After this issue, Cotton Carver is absent until Adventure Comics #39 * Final issue for Dale Daring by Will Ely. * Final chapter of Federal Men's half-year-long Wrong Side of the Law serial. * First issue for Skip Schuyler, a spin-off from the long-running Golden Dragon story. Ian Murray and Doris Willis are discovered to have gotten married in the first part of this sequel. * This issue Adventure Events by Terry Gilkison is absent; it will return next issue. * Also appearing in this issue of Adventure Comics were: ** Goofo the Great by Russell Cole, (final appearance). ** "Gunrunner" (text story) by Terry Keane ** Shorty by Fred Schwab ** Star Light: "Betty Furness, Erroll Flynn, Boris Karloff" by Sheldon Moldoff | Trivia = | Recommended = | Links = }}